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Who said we shouldn't register trademarked domains?

by Boris_yo
27 replies
  • SEO
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I often hear that if person registers a trademarked domain then he could expect a call from the company to take his trademarked domain offline. Well how do you explain THIS?

This is a registered trademarked domain and looks like is parked, full of advertisements.
#domains #register #trademarked
  • Profile picture of the author paulgl
    Unless you claim to be an official site, any domain is fair game.

    But anyone can sue in court to claim it. Many stars do this to
    people who own their name in domains. Some win, some lose.

    The majority lose the case. That's why most official websites
    from these stars is something like thereal____.com or
    starsnamepage.com. But many win and fans are left to
    do pages like britney-spears.com as britneyspears.com is
    owned by britney or at lest sony.

    In short, any domain is fair game, but you may wind up in
    court. Just put up a good argument and the domain is yours.

    I actually own a domain with a well known persons name.
    And I have yet to hear a peep.

    Oh and this includes trademarks as well. I was just using celebrities
    as an easy example.

    Paul
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  • Profile picture of the author Ryan6
    Just throw up a disclaimer at the top of the page and paint them in a good light and you should be ok.
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    • Profile picture of the author tldnetworks
      Originally Posted by Boris_yo View Post

      Well how do you explain THIS?
      Just because it's wrong doesn't mean it can't be done. There are thousands and thousands of trademarked names that are being monetized in various fashions including parked pages.

      Originally Posted by paulgl View Post

      Unless you claim to be an official site, any domain is fair game.
      Fair game to register, but keeping it is another story.

      Originally Posted by paulgl View Post

      But anyone can sue in court to claim it. Many stars do this to people who own their name in domains. Some win, some lose.
      Most win. unless your name is the same as the famous person AND it's being used for your own site, not misrepresenting.

      Originally Posted by paulgl View Post

      The majority lose the case.
      Wrong.

      Originally Posted by paulgl View Post

      In short, any domain is fair game, but you may wind up in court. Just put up a good argument and the domain is yours.
      Most likely you'll end up with a C&D, then a UDRP/WIPO. Typically not in court unless the misrepresentation is egregious enough to cause irreparable damage and there is significant money involved.

      Originally Posted by paulgl View Post

      I actually own a domain with a well known persons name. And I have yet to hear a peep.
      They just haven't decided they want it yet... ; )

      Originally Posted by Ryan6 View Post

      Just throw up a disclaimer at the top of the page and paint them in a good light and you should be ok.
      Can put that on there. If it infringes and they want it, the disclaimer means nothing.

      In reality, the bottom line is that if you are using a TM name you run the risk of losing it. It has to do with IF the TM holder wants the name. Has nothing to do with if you can register/own it. As companies and celebs continue to understand the power of the internet, they will continue to try to control their names. This also includes typo's - reference the long runinng dispute and awards that Verizon has fought.

      There are specific definitions that outline what has to be proven in order for the Complainant to win.
      ICANN | Uniform Domain-Name Dispute-Resolution Policy
      WIPO - World Intellectual Property Organization
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    • Profile picture of the author Boris_yo
      Originally Posted by Ryan6 View Post

      Just throw up a disclaimer at the top of the page and paint them in a good light and you should be ok.
      How it must look? Must it be in round brackets? Must it have "ltd" or just brand name?

      (Disclaimer: This website has no direct relationship with "brand ltd")

      Or like this:

      Disclaimer: This website has no direct relationship with "brand ltd"?

      Or like this:

      Disclaimer: This website has no direct relationship with "brand"?
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  • Profile picture of the author JoshuaG
    I've been sent cease and desist letters due to owning trademarked domains. Some companies simply won't stand for it. Building a brand is a difficult process when 3rd parties are representing it.
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    • Profile picture of the author Boris_yo
      If i am international, what can they do to me?
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      • Profile picture of the author whateverpedia
        Originally Posted by Boris_yo View Post

        If i am international, what can they do to me?
        Exactly the same thing they can do if you're domestic.

        I am Australian and have 2 C&D letters (actual letters - certified mail) from US companies.
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        • Profile picture of the author Boris_yo
          What happens in situation when domain name doesn't contain anything branded, but has content mentioning brand names? Is this okay?
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        • Profile picture of the author terryd
          Originally Posted by whateverpedia View Post

          Exactly the same thing they can do if you're domestic.

          I am Australian and have 2 C&D letters (actual letters - certified mail) from US companies.
          Exactly, I recieved one an I'm in New Zealand and that was for a trademarked TERM.....

          Unless you've got more money than you care for, why risk it?
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      • Profile picture of the author jasonmorgan
        If i am international, what can they do to me?
        Even if you are on the moon they can still take your domain away from you. Country has nothing to do with your domain registration.
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        • Profile picture of the author Kay King
          Anyone who would have his "sig link" for sale probably doesn't care what right or wrong is.

          You like using the trademarks of companies for your domains? Feel free. It's your problem.

          Fear? Yeah, right - there is so much courage involved in the process (not!)
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    • Profile picture of the author Boris_yo
      Originally Posted by JoshuaG View Post

      I've been sent cease and desist letters due to owning trademarked domains. Some companies simply won't stand for it. Building a brand is a difficult process when 3rd parties are representing it.
      How do you know if company sent you? Maybe it was a competitor...
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      • Profile picture of the author paulgl
        I meant that the owners of the domains win most of the time.
        The celebrities, companies, etc. lose. Some don't even
        try anymore as it is a viral thing. Do a search for any
        company, trademark, celebrity, and the websites abound.

        Just do a search for beatles. You get so many knockoffs
        it's pathetic.

        Like they say, any publicity is good publicity.

        I also like to point out hatewalmart.com
        Walmart would love to get them shut down, but...um..no.

        You cannot cybersquat. That is, you cannot register a domain
        in hopes of reselling at a big price to the real person or company.

        But if you have it, use it legitimately, you have the site.

        Paul
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  • Profile picture of the author InternetMarketingIQ
    Go ahead and test the waters. Good idea.
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  • Profile picture of the author StevenR
    I've received countless "Cease & Desist" letters for domain names.

    Some companies are relentless in pursuing people who own domain names with their product / name etc. While others don't care too much.

    Unless you have deep pockets it's easier to take your site down (after receiving a C&D) and move it to another domain than try to fight it (unless you've invested a ton of time into the site).

    /Steven
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  • Profile picture of the author Solidsnake
    Banned
    Those parked domains and even low profile blogs that uses trademarked domains cannot be noticed so I think it's a big deal....Yes, everyone can use trademarked domains I think...
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  • Profile picture of the author jasonmorgan
    Anyone who would have his "sig link" for sale probably doesn't care what right or wrong is.
    It's actually very common and quite popular on some forums to sell sig spots.

    It's just another means of advertising very similar to buying 768x80 billboard banner on a website.

    It's a very effective and direct means of advertising that can be a lot cheaper then trying to buy advertising from a site itself.
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    • Profile picture of the author Kay King
      It's actually very common and quite popular on some forums to sell sig spots.
      This isn't one of those forums - check the signature rules.
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  • Profile picture of the author tldnetworks
    Yep, no risk at all... :rolleyes:

    Apple Seizes 16 Domain Names From A Guy In One Fell Swoop)
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    • Profile picture of the author tjcocker
      Originally Posted by tldnetworks View Post

      Goes to show... don't try to pass your site off as being owned by the trademarked company. Just make informational sites, or sites that clearly distance themselves from being owned by the other company. Like a fan site, or review site, etc. The guy in this story was clearly over the line, way beyond the line, he couldn't even see the line.

      Don't do what he did, and you'll be fine. Of course, that will hurt your chances of making money, but if you want to play it safe don't cross the line.
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  • Profile picture of the author Morpheo
    You can register domains with trademark names IN them, but not exact match domains. Here's the difference:

    OKAY: BestSonyProducts.net
    BAD: Sony.net

    See, Sony doesn't have a trademark for "Best Sony Products", but they DO have a trademark for "Sony". Even then though, you gotta understand that large companies like Sony, etc have enough time and money to go after you even if you're technically right. So unless you want trouble down the road, best to avoid these gray areas. Why on earth would you want to found your business and livelihood on such shaky ground?
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  • Profile picture of the author GeorgR.
    Originally Posted by Boris_yo View Post

    I often hear that if person registers a trademarked domain then he could expect a call from the company to take his trademarked domain offline. Well how do you explain THIS?

    This is a registered trademarked domain and looks like is parked, full of advertisements.

    very easy, he has domain privacy on, so the affected company MIGHT not see it as worth pursuing who the real owner is. Too much effort.
    Its only a adsense page. It would probably be a different story if that site in question had a high PR/traffic and would rank for some keywords.

    I also have a domain with a trademarked name in it by the way, but its probably nowhere in rankings.

    Again...i would NOT do it since it will hit you sooner or later, some companies put more effort into this and some less. A site on page #100 in google is a different story than one which would pop up on page #1 for a good KW having a TM in it...
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  • Profile picture of the author daveshu
    I've got a well known international car hire company after me for one of my domains at the mo. they're threatening me that they'll go via nominet & court if Idon't surrender it, so we'll see what happens.
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    • Profile picture of the author Kay King
      How it must look? Must it be in round brackets? Must it have "ltd" or just brand name?
      Interesting that so many ask about legality - but then jump on the answers that tell them what they want to hear. You can put it in any brackets you want - and it won't keep your site from being taken down if you get a C&D.

      The site you try to use as "proof" - is a parked site. If the owner took it and developed it into a real site, started getting traffic and moving up in SERP's - that's when he'd likely receive a C&D. (That would be AFTER he did the work to build a site and promote it).

      The OP is looking for justification - and there isn't any. Anyone who chooses to use a trademarked name in a url is taking a risk but you can try it if you want. It's your money and your time.

      kay
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  • Profile picture of the author NicheCowboy
    some affiliate programs (like EPN) will close affiliate accounts for using trademarked domains. I recommend against doing it...even when so many others could care less.
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  • Profile picture of the author tjcocker
    If you want to try it out, I say go for it with your eyes open, knowing it could be taken away. But if you're successful there's a chance you'll make a lot of money before that ever happens. If it happens. Just don't try to outrank a company for their main keyword. That obviously raises red flags with them, and probably annoys them.

    The trick is not to go for the keyword "sony" if your site is "bestsonyproducts.com". Try to rank for other long-tail keywords nobody will notice as easily. Like best sony products, or best sony TVs, or something else they wouldn't care about and might not even be ranking for themselves. It happens.
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  • Profile picture of the author CloudTap
    I would not recommend registering a TM domain name these days.
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